Al-Shabaab confiscate Somali farmers’ livestock

At least 20 people have been killed in the latest clashes between Al-Shabaab militants and civilians in the Dumaye district situated in the Mudug region in central Somalia, after the militant group demanded farmers handover their livestock.

“The battle broke out after the local cattle herders defied Al-Shabaab’s order to round up their livestock in what Al-Shabaab described as zakat [alms giving],” said a local resident who spoke to local news outlet Garowe Online on condition of anonymity.

The resident said Al-Shabaab fighters seized the Dumaye district on Saturday, which led to heavy fighting between locals and the Al-Qaeda-affiliated militant group.

A former Al-Shabaab member who defected last week told VOA News said that some of those whose livestock was seized had already paid Al-Shabaab their “zakat” and that the group is attacking people for political reasons.

The events come days after Al-Shabaab militants shot dead an aide to a regional official in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region.

Somalia is in the process of electing a new leader. Yesterday it was reported that the elections have been postponed to January 2017. Both the African Union and the UN have expressed concern over the corruption that has taken place during the electoral campaign.